UEFA Champions League, Round 2, 02/10/24
Denis Zakaria netted a late penalty as AS Monaco came from two goals down to secure a 2-2 draw against Dinamo Zagreb on a sodden night in Croatia.
The Match
The deluge in Zagreb intensified around one hour before kick-off and did not relent. Playing conditions were at best difficult, at worst unplayable. But the game did go ahead. Both teams had to adapt to the conditions; Monaco struggled to do so. Their play style is based on close, neat interchanges often in tight spaces. On a drenched pitch, this did not work.
As both sides got used to the conditions, there were too huge early chances. From a free-kick, Philipp Köhn parried into Mohammed Salisu. On a drier pitch, the ball would have been in the back of the net, but the ball instead held up in the turf, allowing Salisu to recover and clear.
The ball holding up in the surface also gifted Takumi Minamino the chance to open the scoring just minutes later, however, he couldn’t beat Ivan Nevistic from close range. As a result of the conditions, it was a poor-quality affair with lots of fouls, lots of slips and few clear-cut chances.
However, Dinamo Zagreb adapted better and worked a two-on-two break well with Petar Sucic receiving the ball inside the Monaco box, cutting inside of Caio Henrique and then chipping Köhn.
That goal came with almost the last touch of the first half and it somewhat knocked the stuffing out of the Principality club, who lacked fluidity and intensity upon the return from the dressing room. Bruno Petkovic, Dinamo’s main threat was wasteful and perhaps could have put the Croatian side out of sight.
Martin Baturina seemingly did so when he beat three Monaco players before finishing into the bottom corner from outside the box. However, less than 10 minutes later, Salisu gave Monaco a lifeline with a back-post header.
That spurred them on to get the equaliser, which was netted from the spot by Zakaria after Folarin Balogun was felled in the box. “We came here to take the three points so I’d say it’s two points lost,” Zakaria told Canal Plus post-match. But in the context, Monaco must be happy to leave Croatia with anything at all, which leaves them in a strong position in the UEFA Champions League ‘League Phase’, and means that they remain unbeaten so far in all competitions this season.
Monaco player ratings
Philipp Köhn – 4
Caio Henrique – 3
Late in recovering an unbalanced as a result, he allowed Sucic to cut inside for Dinamo’s opener. Given Henrique’s long-range passing ability and the need to go direct on a drenched pitch, he would have been expected to have more of an impact in possession too.
Mohammed Salisu – 6
Thilo Kehrer – 4
Vanderson – 5
Lamine Camara – 4
Denis Zakaria – 7
Amid the chaos, the captain remained calm. He was at fault for not getting closer to Baturina for Dinamo’s second, however, unlike his teammates, he put in a largely error-free performance, proving combative, keeping it clean and getting the all-important equaliser.
Aleksandr Golovin – 4
Replaced by Folarin Balogun (5) at half-time. The USMNT forward struggled to have an impact. He made frequent good runs in behind the Dinamo defence but could not be found, however, he did win Monaco’s penalty late on.
Takumi Minamino – 3
The Japan international lost the ball on 19 occasions on the night and looked out of sync with his teammates throughout the match. He missed Monaco’s one big chance in the first half, which came inside the opening five minutes. Had he taken it, it may have been a very different game.
Maghnes Akliouche – 4
Breel Embolo – 4
Replaced by George Ilenkihena (4) at half-time.
